Feed of packing-machines.



PATENTBD JAN. 27, 1903.

W. ROSE FEED 0P PACKING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 24, 1902.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

N0 MODEL.

\M'inesses:

1/ I I W PATENTED JAN. 27, 1903.

W. ROSE. FEED 0F PACKING MACHINES.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

APPLIGATION FILED MAR. 24, 1902.

N0 MODEL.

fnvez zhr 461% m No. 719,374. PATBNTED JAN. 27, 1903. W. ROSE. FEED OF PACKING MACHINES;

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 24, 1902.

H0 MODEL. 3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

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NITFD STATES if FFICE.

WILLIAM ROSE, OF GAINSBOROUGH, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR TO VVRIGIITS AUTOMATIC TOBACCO PACKING MACHINE COMPANY, OF LYNCH- BURG, VIRGINIA.

FEED OF PACKING-MACHINES.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 719,374, dated January 27, 1903.

Application filed March 24, 1902. Serial No. 99,603. (No model.)

' ject of the King of Great Britain, and a resident of Gainsborough, in the county of Lincoln, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Feed of Packing-Machines, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

Heretofore in machines for forming packages of tobacco or other material it has been the practice for one or more persons, called feeders, to weigh or measure out the desired charges of material for the individual packages and place them in moving receptacles, by which they are conveyed to molds or pockets of the packing-machine, where they are inclosed in wrappers. Sometimes through negligence or inadvertence a receptacle passes beyond the reach of the feeders without receiving its charge, which entails a loss of time and is liable to seriously interfere with the proper operation of the machine, especially when the charges are fed into buckets mounted upon a continuously-moving chain or belt.

It is the object of my invention to provide means by which tobacco or other material is fed to a package-forming machine in such way as to economize time and prevent any waste of wrappers or obstruction to the operation of the machine by enabling each receptacle as it passes the feeder or feeders to receive its charge of material.

The accompanying drawings illustrate a form of feeding apparatus or devices embodying my invention, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of the feeding devices. Fig. 2 is a plan, some of the parts being removed to show parts beneath. Fig. 3 shows one of the feeding-drums detached and drawn to a larger scale, one-half being in side elevation and one-half in vertical section. Fig. 4 is a view of the same, partly in plan and partly in horizontal section. Fig. 5 is a sectional elevation of part of the feeding-drum, showing the hinged bottom with which it is provided in its closed position;

and Fig. 6 is a similar view showing the hinged bottom in its open position.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, supported on legs 2 is a frame 1, having lugs 3, to which are secured studs 4. On each stud 4 (four of which are shown in the drawings) is mounted a stationary chamber 4, which I will refer to as a platform, and above this platform is mounted so as to rotate on the stud 4 a drum 5, which I will refer to as a feed-drum. The feed-drums 5 are each provided with a number of receptacles 6, into each of which a weighed or measured quantity of material to constitute a package charge is placed. These drums are shown in the drawings as receiving rotary motion at a constant speed from a shaft 7 of the package-making machine by means of endless chairs 8, carrying buckets 9, by which charges of material to be packed are conveyed from the feeding-drums 5 to the said package-machine, but. the said drum or drums may be rotated by any other suitable means. The endless chains 8 engage the teeth ofsprocket-wheels 9, fast on a horizontal shaft 10, carried in brackets 11 on the frame 1, on which shaft is a bevel-wheel 12, in gear with a bevel-wheel 13 on a vertical shaft 14, mounted in bearings 15 and 16 on the frame 1 and platform 4. On the vertical shaft 14 is a pinion 17, gearin g with teeth 17 on the circumference of the first feed-drum 5, so as to impart rotation to the said drum. The several drums 5 are geared together, so that the said drums are all simultaneously rotated from the vertical shaft 14.

Each receptacle 6 in the feed-drums is provided with a hinged plate 18, constituting a movable bottom,which is held in its closed position by a plate or fixed surface 19 on the platform 4, which plate or fixed surface has in it a gap or opening 20 through which the material is discharged from each receptacle as it comes over the said gap or opening 20, the said plate or bottom 18 when over this gap not being supported by the plate 19 consequently falls into the position shown in Figs. 3 and 6. As the drum continues to r0- tate the said hinged plate or bottom 18 is returned to its raised or closed position by hearing against the edge of the gap in the plate 19 or preferably against an antifriction-roller 21, as shown, or the closing and opening of the said hinged plate or bottom may be effected by a cam secured to the shaft or stud upon which the drum rotates or by any other convenient means. A stationary plate may be provided over each of the said drums above the receptacle from which the charge is being delivered to the con veyer to prevent a second charge from being dropped in the said receptacle while the hinged plate or bottom is open. On a stud projecting from the platform 4! is mounted an arm 22, Figs. 3, 4, 5 and 6,onwhich are two yielding pads or bufiers 23 24:, the surfaces 23 and 24 being of india-rubber or similar material to reduce vibration and noise, against one of which buffers 23 the hinged plate or bottom 18 strikes when released from the plate 19, causing the said hinged plate or bottom to vibrate slightly so as to shake from it any material that may tend to adhere thereto. The arm 22 is connected by a spring 25 to the platform or other stationary part, so as to retain the other buffer 2 1 pressed against a stop 26 to prevent undue rebound of the hinged plate or bottom. By the use of these rotary drums the person supplying each drum with material is enabled to keep several of the receptacles filled, so that should any delay occur in Weighing or measuring one charge the package-machine will still properly receive its charges;

In the case of a machine in which an endless traveling chain fitted with a number of buckets is employed and in which two or more persons are employed to feed the material, I employ as many rotary drums and their adjuncts as there are persons engaged in feeding the machine. I have shown four of the said feed-drums in the drawings, re-

spectively designated as A B C D, geared together and driven by the endless chains carrying buckets 9, by which the charges are conveyed to the packing mechanism. The traversing motion of the chain of buckets is so timed with reference to the speed of rotation of the said feed-drums that the buckets will receive a charge from each of the feeddrums in succession, one bucket, as a, receiving a charge from the feed-drum A, the next bucket 17 receiving a charge from the feeddrum B, the next bucket 0 receiving a charge from the feed-drum O, and the next bucket (1 receiving a charge from the feed-drum D, so that after charging one bucket from one of the drums the same drum will supply the next fourth bucket that comes beneath the discharging-receptacle in the said drum. For instance, the next bucket charged by the feeddrum A will be that marked a, that charged by feed-drum B is marked b, that marked 0' being the next fed by the drum 0, and the bucket marked d will be charged by the feeddrum D. If only one feed-drum be employed, the speed of the chains will be timed with reference to the rotation of the said feed-drum so that each successive bucket will be charged by each succeeding chamberin the feed-drum.

Although I have shown the feed-drums as discharging the material into buckets carried on endless chains, it is evident that the contents of the chambers may be discharged onto any suitable conveyer which will carry the material to the packing mechanism.

The chains 8 when employed are supported on guide-pulleys 27, suitably arranged on the frame 1 and on the frame of the package-machine.

A continuous rotation is imparted to the feed-drums by the pinion 17; but to provide against damage to the machine in case of an obstruction to the rotation of the drums I mount the pinion 17 loosely on the vertical shaft 14;, but connect it so as to rotate with the said shaft by a collar 28 on the shaft, which collar is free to slide longitudinally thereon, but is caused to rotate therewith, the said collar having a projection 29, which is caused by a spring 30 to engage in a notch or recess in the boss of the pinion 17, so as to cause the said pinion to rot-ate with the shaft and rotate the drums. Should, however, an obstruction cause the drums to be retarded, the pressure on the pinion 17 will cause the projection 29 on the collar 28 to disengage the notch in the boss of the pinion, which then will remain stationary, while the vertical shaft will continue to rotate in the pinion until the cause of the obstruction is removed, whereupon under the action of the spring 30 the projection 29 will be again caused to engage the pinion at the proper time to suit the position of the buckets.

The platforms 4 are hopper-shaped in the interior, and the stationary plate or surface 19 has recesses 19 therein to conduct any dust or small matter that may escape from the drums into and from the interior of the platforms 4?.

It is not intended to limit the invention to the special construction shown in the drawings and particularly described in connection therewith, nor to a feeding apparatus provided with a specific number of feed-drums, nor to a conveyer of any fixed construction, inasmuch as the main gist or principle of the invention consists in the arrangement of a retary dru m having several receptacles or chambers to contain charges of material to be packed, with a conveyer by which the charges received upon it are transferred to the package-forming machine.

Having hereinbefore described the nature of my invention and in what manner the same the combination of a drum arranged to rotate in a horizontal plane and having a number of chambers or receptacles opening upward into which charges of material to be packed are placed, means for discharging the material therefrom and a conveyor to receive the charges and deliver them to devices where they are inclosed in wrappers, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination, in an apparatus for feeding material to a package-forming machine, of a rotary drum, or drums, having a number of receptacles into which package charges are placed, an opening and closing plate or bottom for each receptacle, a conveyor for transferring the charges to the packageforming machine, means for opening the bot tom when a receptacle is over the conveyer to discharge its contents thereon, and means for closing and keeping said bottom closed when not over the conveyer, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination, in an apparatus for feeding material to a package-forming machine, of a rotary drum or drums having a number of receptacles into which package charges are placed, a hinged bottom for each receptacle, a stationary plate to hold the bottom in its closed position provided with a gap or opening to permit the bottom to swing open to discharge the contents of the receptacle, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination, in an apparatus for feeding material to a package-forming machine, of a rotating drum having receptacles into which package charges are placed provided with movable bottoms, means for opening and closing the bottoms, an endless chain of buckets extending from beneath the drum to the package-forming machine, means for rotating the drum and moving the chain of buckets at such relative speeds that the buckets will be brought to register with the receptacles of the drum at the moment their hottoms are opened and thereby discharge their contents into the buckets, substantially as set forth.

V 5. The combination, in an apparatus for feeding material to a package-forming machine, with a rotary drum or drums, having receptacles into which package charges are placed, of an endless chain of buckets arranged to receive said charges and convey them to the machine, means to move the said chain from the said machine and through the chain to rotate the drum or drums, substantially as set forth.

6. The combination, in an apparatus for feeding material to a package-forming machine, with a stationary platform and fixed plate ,19 provided with a gap or opening 20, of a rotating drum 5 having a number of receptacles provided with hinged bottoms 18, whereby at a certain point in the rotation of the drum the hinged bottoms can swing open to discharge their contents and are then closed and held in the closed position, substantially as set forth.

7. The combination, in an apparatusfor feeding material to a package-forming machine, with a rotating drum having a series of receptacles into which package charges are placed and provided with swinging bottoms, means for holding the bottoms in their closed position and means for permitting them to swing downward into an open position at a certain point in the rotation of the drum, of

buffers arranged to give a vibration to the bottoms and to prevent their undue rebound when they reach their open position, sub- 

